Street Fighter IV is really freakin' awesome. Not only did it make it to my top three games of last year, but it's one that I have consistently jumped back to time and time again. Whenever folks mention it, I get this craving and just have to go play even if it's just for a few matches. So here we are a year later and Capcom has tacked on a "Super" to their Street Fighter IV. The game at its core is essentially the same, so if you'd like to read a review on that part, you may as well look back a year and check out the one I wrote back then. This review will focus on the new additions and changes to the game instead of just rehashing what I wrote previously.

To start, how about we talk about the negative stuff? That new announcer is pretty weak. If you're paying attention to him, he's trying way too hard to be totally extreme. If you're not trying to hear though, at least he fades into the periphery and is barely noticeable. We've now also got a 35 fighter roster which can make the character select screen a bit intimidating for newcomers. Oh, and Hakan is totally weird and they completely removed my favoritest song ever, Indestructible by The Next Door.

In case one of the original 25 characters wasn't doing it for you, now they've added ten additional fighters and all of them are unlocked from the start. Eight of these are from past Street Fighter games, and two are completely new to the series. All of the fighters now have an additional Ultra move that can be selected prior to the start of the fight, unless you're in arcade mode where you'll just pick it and stick with it. These new ultras are generally quite different from the existing ones, giving the defender just a little more to worry about when looking to dodge, and some of the new ultras can be followed up with additional moves. I honestly would have liked to have seen these both available during the match instead of having to choose one ahead of time, but they do add another degree of variance to an already complex engine.

The ten characters alone would probably be enough for this to exist as an expansion, however Capcom has decided to go the extra mile and address just about every single complaint players had. The entire roster has been tweaked for balance and timing. Despite developer commentary that Seth would be even more ruthless this time around, I found him much easier with significantly reduced damage being dealt. Even on the hardest difficulty, he fell after only one continue which is nothing like what I experienced previously.

Online multiplayer is the biggest change and everything is for the better. Instead of just having the 1v1 Ranked and Player match "lobbies", we've got Ranked, Endless, and Team Battle. Ranked is now a mild combination of what we found in the tournament DLC from SFIV and ranked, complete with an improved point system, double blind character select, and letter grading for competitors. You'll be happy to know also that quick match performs as quick match should. Instead of giving you a list of three possible games to join, the system attempts to place you directly into the best match. You'll still experience a "cannot join match" error, but it is certainly less frequent. One really subtle but awesome change is that the game will remember your previous character choice during multiplayer, making the character select go just a hair quicker.

Next up is the new 'Player Match' in the form of Endless Mode and Team Battle. While these won't contribute to your overall ranking, these are the things that players were looking for previously. Endless is basically the quarter match from Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, where up to eight players may join a session and wait for their turn to fight. Winner stays, loser pays. The good thing here is that a lobby can be created with all private slots and be joined while already in progress, so if you're waiting for some friends, you can get in a few matches. If you're waiting, you won't be looking at a blank screen though, you'll be able to spectate the game that's going on. Team Battle allows groups of two, three, or four to face off in a similar winner-stays style until one team is completely defeated. Both of these sate the desires planted by the shoddy original iteration.

If you didn't like Street Fighter IV, there's really nothing here that will change your mind. While it is a bit disappointing that this is a full retail item that will certainly split the userbase, if you're an existing fan there's just about zero reason to not buy this. Capcom has released a truly monumental update to the best fighting game in years which will certainly keep it truckin' long into the future.

Score: 5 out of 5

The Good

Tons of thoughtful improvements to an already phenominal experience.

Overhauled online options create the experience we were all hoping for.

Still infinitely replayable.

The Bad

The announcer is new, and bad.

A split userbase may mean only the hardcore will come to the new land. Better kick up your game.

Oh, and also--can you list what the final list of "perks" are that owners of the original SFIV get from SSFIV?

All characters get 2 new colors.

11, which is the heavily shade "ink" look from SF4's movies.
12, which is based on the "pencil" look from SSF4's movies.

11 is OK I guess, 12 is annoying and I don't like it. Too flickery for me.

Some people are disappointed that this is all we get. I'm not personally, there was no way in hell that anything affecting gameplay would have been given out, it always had to be something a bit frivolous.

Seeing perfect scores for this game all over the place...I will never understand. SF is by far the worst successful fighting game series.

I'm not even trolling. I'm desperately seeking some clarification as to why people honestly think this is a good fighting game. Take away all the presentation, graphics, music, characters, story, all that shit. What's left? Nothing but a shamefully primitive fighter on par with TMNT Tournament Fighters on the fucking NES. It just plays horribly, guys. Can't anyone see that?

Go watch any pro tournament video. What does it look like? Fighting? Nope. Looks like a couple guys having epileptic fits. Now go watch a professional Tekken or Soul Calibur video. Well gee, that looks like a fight scene. Hmm, I wonder why?

I'm really trying to see just how it plays horribly, but I guess I'm not looking hard enough because I'm too busy having fun... Enjoying its responsive controls and large roster of characters. How could you pull off a focus attack or ultra combo in TMNT?

On a related note.
Fighting Layer had the focus/ultra attack back in 1998...

I can't find one where you focus attack but the input was the same...punch+kick.
When SF4 first came out it reminded me of this...just more casual and er less Tekken-ish.
I remember when SF did hyper or supers not Ultra's like in Killer Instinct. Personally I think "focus" attacks are a big set back.

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Originally Posted by Chief Smash

It's certainly not placing your manhood where another man expels his feces.

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Originally Posted by Suicidal ShiZuru

This is Evil Avatar, a video game forum, you dumb cunt. You're a pussy and everything you just said was bullshit.

On a related note.
Fighting Layer had the focus/ultra attack back in 1998...

Umm... the original Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo has Super Combos (which are basically the same thing as Ultra Combos, if not as flashy or over the top by today's standards) when it was released in '94.

As for Mozgus' negativity about SFIV--lols...

The only other fighting game released that has been more fine-tuned and balanced was Street Fighter 3: Third Strike, which is still the dueling platform of choice for many of the top tier fighting gamers. And comparing SFIV/SSFIV to a piece of crap game like TMNT:Tournament Fighters is so ridiculous as to completely invalidate any point you were trying to make. The responsiveness of the controls and the depth of gameplay ALONE completely invalidate the comparison, and only serve to out you as the Tekken or Soul Calibur fanboy you likely are.

Now it's fine if you don't like the 2D fighter style--that's perfectly legitimate. 3D fighters most certainly have their merits, and I enjoy them very much. But it's not a really effective direct comparison to compare the two, as 3D fighters are much more organic in the flow of the fight, while 2D fighters tend to be more about split second timing and pixel perfect precision. Neither is better or worse--they're just different. And obviously there will be personal preferences for one or the other.

I dont hate 2d at all. Everything SNK has offered, as well as Guilty Gear X have been many leagues above SF. In fact, I'll even say SFA had the right idea. Capcom was finally ready to take the series to the next level, but the diehard fucktards just wouldnt accept a new level of complexity.

I'd love to hear exactly how SF4 is complex. Balanced yes. But rock paper scissors is a balanced game too. Balanced doesnt mean shit when the characters have like 3 legitimate special moves each. Theres no depth to that and there never will be.

Responsiveness of the controls? Wtf is that? The game does something when you press a button and it deserves a fucking medal? Every mainstream fighter from the last 15 years was responsive.

And thats my point exactly. SF fanboys must be living in the past. Its the only explanation. They seem to just let the evolution of gaming as a whole pass them by.

Reminds me of the crazies who still say that Starcraft is the best RTS. If anything, its just pure laziness. Its not that hard to go and try something new for once. Please people, take a fucking chance.

Umm... the original Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo has Super Combos (which are basically the same thing as Ultra Combos, if not as flashy or over the top by today's standards) when it was released in '94.

Not talking those/they work differently but a related "ultra" (with 3 bars kinda like SF3). (They are not kept charged after win/lose ect ect) I don't think SF2 Turbo had the first "super" combos btw...Either way they are almost the same thing I wonder why they changed the name...

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chief Smash

It's certainly not placing your manhood where another man expels his feces.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Suicidal ShiZuru

This is Evil Avatar, a video game forum, you dumb cunt. You're a pussy and everything you just said was bullshit.

Go watch any pro tournament video. What does it look like? Fighting? Nope. Looks like a couple guys having epileptic fits. Now go watch a professional Tekken or Soul Calibur video. Well gee, that looks like a fight scene. Hmm, I wonder why?

Granted I just started playing Street Fighter 4 but the level of combos and knowledge of the game needed to play is quite engaging. From canceling attacks to small chip damage to mult hit combos, Street Fighter 4 has everything that it takes to stand toe to toe with any of the competitors.